TheAnalysisofEnglishTeachers’DiscourseinMiddleSchool

馬魏莉

I. Introduction

The teachers discourse refers to the language which is used by teachers in the second language or foreign language class. It can be divided into the classroom language， teaching language， language communication and feedback and so on. In English class， teachers discourse is not only an important carrier of passing language teaching and the interaction between teachers and students ，but also a kind of input of teaching contents（Liu Xudong，2009）.It is also an important way for students contact the learning language. So it plays an important role in the organization of classroom and the process of learners language acquisition （Nunan， 1990）.

As the language which is used in a special situation ， the teachers discourse has the influence on students language learning results in both quality and quantity .It is because of the importance of teachers discourse， plenty of scholars has engaged in a large number of empirical studies in this respects. But these researchers pay attention to the teachers discourse as more features that are characteristic of language input. This paper is to analyze the teachers discourse in English classroom and promote the problem which exist in todays language teaching and put forward the improvement strategy.

II. The types and characteristics of teachers discourse

A. Organization teaching language：

a. Prologue

b. Asking questions

c. Feedback

d. Instruction

e. Summary

B. Teaching information：

The teachers discourse is an important source of students' language input. For most learners in China， English class is likely to be the main or even the only place for learning language and using language ， especially for remote areas of the learners. In order to promote language acquisition， learners should receive comprehensible input as much as possible. Therefore， focusing on teachers discourse in English classroom has special important meaning in language input and the quality of language.

III. The problems of teachers discourse in English class

（1）Teachers discourse take up too much time in class

At present， English teaching is mainly traditional teacher-centered teaching. The teacher held the dominant position of the class. 70% - 80% of the teachers to do the most is the interpretation of the text in class and after-class exercises. Students are hardly ever willing to take part in the activities in the class. In class， teachers talk accounted for more than half the class time.

（2） Teachers discourse are too simple and formatted

Teachers discourse structures are relatively simple and formatted. Unreasonable questions and lack of pragmatic knowledge are also existing in current English teaching .In traditional English class ，teachers spend too much time to explain the words， phrases， sentences， grammar and translation and so on .They just use the formatting questions like these：

Would you please answer the question？

Read after me and repeat the words .

Today， we are going to learn Unit 6.

……

（3）The feedback of teachers discourse is inappropriate

Students ， especially middle school students are not active in learning language .Because of the poor basic knowledge ，their answers sometimes are not perfect or having too many mistakes. At this time ，teachers need be patient and say something politely. students may give negative feedback because of the interruption or scold from the teacher in the class.

T： Our motherland has a long history ，that is about 5，000 years .There are many great pieces of work in art ，nature， architecture and so on . Can you list and describe some for us？

S： Great Wall…

T： No， you should say the Great Wall. It is a proper noun. Clear？

S： The Great Wall. It is a master piece .It made by hand…

T： No， it is made by hands.

S： Yes. And it express the wisdom of Chinese people…

T： Dont forget the es ， it expresses the …

IV. Strategies to raise the teachers discourse in English classroom

（1）Changing the teachers role

In modern language class， teachers must have the modern education concept and understand language learning features and teaching methods. In traditional English class， teachers are the centre of the class. However， we need change the teacher-centered into student-centered in our language courses. Teachers will be the guide ，not the master of the class. Students need to think the questions on their own.

（2）Improving teachers discourse

Teachers spoken English and language comprehension need to be improved. Teachers also need to improve their skills of questioning and integrated skill .Teachers should adjust the structure of subjects and enrich interdisciplinary knowledge. In the limited teaching time ， teachers need to put words adjustment to the learner's current level or slightly higher than the current level as far as possible .Trying to make the student to obtain comprehensible input from teachers discourse. On the one hand， teachers ought to improve their spoken English， expression ability and communication skills， pay attention to the validity of information content， and provide accurate and fluent language input for learners. On the other hand， the teacher must fully grasp and understand the students' vocabulary， grammar knowledge and the actual situation such as listening and speaking skills and so on， choosing different treatment in different learner and selecting the appropriate discourse in the language class.

（3）Making the feedback appropriately

In the language teaching， the teacher must make appropriate feedback in time for learners. This is another important part of teachers discourse. A large number of studies have shown that positive feedback more helpful to improve the learner's behavior than negative feedback. Students don't want teachers often correct their mistakes， they are more hopeful to get the teacher's praise and comments. The appropriate feedback can enhance learners' learning motivation and stimulate their desire to participate in classroom interaction. Teachers should set out from the psychological characters of learners to acquire language， to judge the errors. According to the specific situation， teachers should take different approaches and strategies. For oral errors in pronunciation， if it does not affect the communication， it need not to be corrected. We can take with peer correction or self-correcting method. On this basis， students gradually cultivate their abilities to correct by themselves consciously .

（4）Creating a loose environment for students

In the process of English teaching， teachers create a loose environment for students to take part in. To promote the teaching effect， teachers should create a relaxed and harmonious classroom atmosphere， stimulate students' learning motivation， drive， and self-confidence， so that the students can speak English easily. Therefore， teachers can lay the topics that students are interested in， inspire their participating interest and desire under the background of its familiar with material. At the same time， teachers pay attention to follow the principle of conversation of enthusiasm， politely or humorously. Taking group work， simultaneously stimulate learners to use language to express their ideas of desire and participate in language teaching actively.

V. Conclusion

Teachers' discourse play an important role in the process of language teaching organization and learners language acquisition. Teachers should have a more comprehensive understanding on the types and characteristics of teachers discourse and try to improve their own words. Teachers should attach great importance to both the amount of language and the quality of the language. Through scientific and rational use of classroom discourse for the students to create a good learning atmosphere， and promote the level and quality of foreign language teaching overall actively.

References：

[1]劉旭東.中學英語教師課堂反饋話語研究[J].中小學外語教學，2009（1）：41-45.